1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a power and/or telecommunication cable comprising a layer able to emit light radiation.
More particularly, the power and/or telecommunication cable is used in mines and similar applications such as severe abrasion and dark environment.
2. Description of Related Art
A conventional power or telecommunication cable includes one or more conductor elements, especially insulated conductor elements, with a protective outer sheath. An electrical power cable is typically constructed with conductor elements formed of copper wire for efficiently conducting electrical power on whatever scale is desired. A telecommunication cable is typically constructed of relatively small wire conductor elements for conducting electrical signals and/or fiber-optic strands for conducting optical signals.
Power and telecommunication cables are used in many environments. One of the harshest environments for cables is mining operations in dark environment, In particular, the cables used in mining operations tend to be subjected to severe abrasion due to equipment, traffic, and mining materials moving over or along the mining cable. In addition, the lack of cable visibility in said dark environment frequently produces cable crushing or abrasive wearing by the mining trucks and the shovel machines.
Technical solutions already exist to visualize the cable so that the cable is less subjected to severe abrasion. In this respect, two variants are well-known
The first variant consists in using an outer sheath such as an outer rubber sheath pigmented with a fluorescent pigment. However, said outer sheath presents low durability of the fluorescent pigments due to direct exposure to the ground, air, water and UV light.
The second variant is to case a reflective tape helically wrapped over the outer sheath of the cable. However, said additional reflective tape risks to be easily destructed due to severe use in mining conditions.